Ponderings of a Scientist

Ah the dog days of summer, literally - we now have a puppy!  His name is Oliver and he is a 4-6 month old rescue dog of mixed heritage.

Addie loves him!  Before getting Oliver we went on vacation to Cape Cod.  We had a Grammie babysitter living nearby so we actually got some baby-free vacation time as well and Addie had her first without parent’s sleep over.  Check out all the pictures here (the site has a new interface, but the password is still “addison” all lowercase) and the movies below.

Blueberry Picking
CC Vacation swimming
CC Vacation carousel

Check out henninger.shutterfly.com for more June 2008 and July 2008 pictures.  We just got a new camera as our old one is large, clunky, and doesn’t work all the time.  Now the old one is off to the Canon repair shop for a free recall fix.

This week a new sandbox and a picturesque weekend wedding get away.  She henninger.shutterfly.com for updated images.

Here are some Addie hard a work videos.

So, as usual we have been busy.  We took down our old deck and built a new, larger deck the week of Memorial Day - see the pictures.  We have one more coat of stain to go, hopefully tomorrow night, and then it will be truly complete and we will be done with large home improvement projects for 2008! Yeah!

We set a 2008 budget/project plan in January, which included redoing our 1st floor bathroom (done just before Addie’s bday) and putting on a new deck (99% complete).  As a bonus we also redid the basement family room.  So now we get to sit back and relax..err yeah right… I already have a list in my head of all the small projects to be done and potential 2009 projects.  Hey at least we have a condo, not a house, so we aren’t responsible for outside/yard maintenance, although we do have flowers and vegetables to attend to.

Last weekend we went on our first camping trip with Addison. We went to Pawtuckaway State Park in Nottingham NH.  We had a great site - see the pictures - and it was relatively cool thanks to the lake breeze and tree cover.  We did, however, end up cutting the trip short because it was super hot inside the tent and we were worried about Addie sweating too much at night - plus she had a cold and didn’t sleep well the first night camping (she doesn’t do well when we are all in the same room) and I had to cut her nap short because she was drenched in sweat in the tent. So we packed up and came home Saturday night and then hung out in Portsmouth on Sunday instead - see picture from the park.

We are off to Addison’s first wedding (attending that is) this weekend at a camp in Vermont.  Stay tuned for photos.

I’ve posted the pictures from Addie’s party.  As well as pictures from the week before and after.  Lots of new toys were played with (some before the party - like her easel and her table and chairs set).  We also took a trip to Maine for a Mommy/Baby play date on the beach.

If you notice, most of the party images, taken my a friend I will not name, are blurry.  Friend I do not blame you, apparently I’m the only one who can take focused images with our stupid camera, Zipy is guilt of the blur too!

Here are two movies from her party (bday singing and cake eating) and one of her mastering a new skill.

Oh and FYI Addie has taken up walking again.  She is really getting the knack for it now.  Significantly fewer falls than a few weeks ago, and her confidence is swelling.  She can now stand herself up by pushing off the ground, and walk 5-6 steps before falling.  She is also learning to balance herself when she is about to fall and to pivot to change directions.jj

Here is a link to the photos taken by Addie’s Aunt Nikki at Addie’s big party.  At some point this week I will upload the images and videos I took as well.

Last three weeks of images are up at henninger.shutterfly.com and a new video is on You Tube of Addie feeding herself.  Enjoy.

Addie is walking!…a bit that is.  On Sunday night she was standing about 3 feet away from me holding onto a bookcase, when suddenly she pivoted and walked, rather steadily about 2 feet before diving into my arms.  Since then she has repeated the performance on numerous occasions thanks to parental prodding.

The tricky thing is, she doesn’t really know how to stand on her own for more than 10-20 seconds, so she is learning how to stand unsupported and walk at the same time.  If she gets her balance first by standing and then starts walking she does okay, but most times she tries to walk before adjusting her balance and promptly falls over.

See shutterfly for the last three weeks of photos.  We’ve been busy so there is a lot to look at:  Addie’s second Bruin’s game, our visit to Ikea, our trip to Providence/Newport RI. and our new wagon!  Not included: images of our terrible weekend with the stomach bug!  Addie and I made quick recoveries, Zipy is still queasy.  Hopefully he still isn’t contagious because Addie starts school (daycare) on Monday.  At first she is going only one day a week.  After the summer we are going to send her two days, so I can pick up a few more hours at work.  We visited her school yesterday and I left her in her class for an hour long test run and she loved it.

The Same: More images of Addie are up on shutterfly. Also a movie here.

The New: Mike and I started a forum on parenting for our friends with young ones or with an interest in young ones.  Its here in case I forgot tell you.